Duchess of Edinburgh doubles her workload amid Princess Kate's absence

The court circular, the official record of royal engagements, shows that Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh doubled her workload in the past year.

So far this month, Sophie has carried out 37 engagements, compared to 18 engagements in September 2023.

Last year, Sophie became the first royal to visit Baghdad in Iraq.

She also recently visited Tanzania to continue her work to raise awareness of trachoma, a preventative disease that can cause blindness.

Sophie and Prince Edward are set to travel to Malta next month for a series of engagements.

Last year, the duchess was listed as the fourth hardest-working member of the Royal Family, having carried out a total of 114 engagements.

Meanwhile, the Duke of Edinburgh came in third place on the list.

The King ranked in second place and, unsurprisingly, Princess Anne took the top spot.

Prince Edward carried out 144 engagements last year, whereas the King undertook 197 visits.

The Princess Royal came in first place, having performed a whopping 457 official engagements in 2023.

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As well as the King and Kate's diagnoses, Prince William was out of action for a while as he focused on his wife's recovery.

Before joining the Royal Family, Sophie worked her way up in PR.

She previously worked at Capital Radio, before launching her own public relations agency, RJH Public Relations, in 1996.

Sophie ran her agency, alongside her business partner Murray Harkin, for five years, and later married Prince Edward in 1999.